The concept of “wahy” (divine revelation) in the Quran has a broad meaning and is not limited to prophets alone. This term has been used for special humans, angels, the earth, and honeybees. But why among all creatures has the honeybee been specifically associated with this concept in the Quranic text? This question leads us to contemplate the cognitive status and divinely-inspired guidance of this remarkable creature.
The Arabic word “wahy” means to convey a message quickly and discreetly. This term appears in various contexts in the Quran, each carrying a specific meaning appropriate to its recipient. However, all instances share one common characteristic: wahy is a message that reaches its recipient without distortion, and the recipient receives and implements it completely and accurately. This implies that the recipient must possess the necessary cognitive capacity to understand this message precisely, completely, and without alteration.
In Surah An-Nahl, Allah says:
“وَأَوْحَىٰ رَبُّكَ إِلَى ٱلنَّحْلِ أَنِ ٱتَّخِذِى مِنَ ٱلْجِبَالِ بُيُوتًۭا وَمِنَ ٱلشَّجَرِ وَمِمَّا يَعْرِشُونَ ﴿٦٨﴾ ثُمَّ كُلِى مِن كُلِّ ٱلثَّمَرَٰتِ فَٱسْلُكِى سُبُلَ رَبِّكِ ذُلُلًۭا ۚ يَخْرُجُ مِنۢ بُطُونِهَا شَرَابٌۭ مُّخْتَلِفٌ أَلْوَٰنُهُۥ فِيهِ شِفَآءٌۭ لِلنَّاسِ ۗ إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَءَايَةًۭ لِّقَوْمٍۢ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ ﴿٦٩﴾”
In this verse, the honeybee is commanded to build its home in mountains, trees, and human-made structures, to feed on all fruits, and to follow the paths prepared for it. These paths have characteristics that make the bee’s movement easy and guided, but does this guidance refer to the nature of the paths themselves or to the bee’s manner of movement? This is a point worthy of deep reflection.
Divine revelation represents a special form of message transmission that requires the recipient to have the capacity to process and implement it. This characteristic shows that the revelation to honeybees involves not only innate guidance but also a form of conscious processing at the level of behavior and decision-making. Scientific studies confirm that bees, despite their small brain structure, possess astonishing cognitive abilities that enable them to identify optimal routes and make the best decisions in complex situations:
- Numerical cognition and understanding mathematical relationships (counting, number recognition, and even grasping the concept of zero)
- Spatial memory and advanced navigation abilities (creating mental maps and using them to return to the hive)
- Communication and information transfer through social learning (waggle dances to communicate food source coordinates)
- Problem-solving and adaptation to environmental changes (altering methods when facing obstacles)
Acceptance of divine revelation means that the recipient, while possessing independent cognitive abilities, demonstrates flexibility in adjusting their path according to the revealed truth. This is precisely what cognitive science identifies as cognitive flexibility: the ability to change one’s thought and behavioral patterns based on new information, even when it contradicts previous experiences.
From this perspective, the divine revelation to honeybees leads us to a deeper understanding of cognition, guidance, and the conscious acceptance of new paths. This verse, with all its scientific dimensions, directs us to an important question: If such cognitive processing is possible in a small creature, how much more profound must it be in humans as the most noble of creations?
